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Breast may be the best, but for some mamas, it's not an option or supplementing with formula is a must. I found I wasn't able to produce enough breast milk with my lil one, so I resorted to formula to keep up. My gut was to reach for organic, but to be honest, I wasn't sure it was any better than regular formula.

Organic formulas can cost up to 30 percent more than their nonorganic counterparts, and those extra dollars can bust the budget. Though going organic is the popular thing to do, is it the healthiest option for your tot?

A recent Dartmouth study found traces of arsenic in organic baby formulas that include organic brown rice syrup, a common sweetener in organic formulas, leading many moms to stop buying and start reading the ingredients. Often in top-selling organic brands, sweeteners, such as organic sugar, are found within the top five ingredients — but not in nonorganic blends. Of the 17 organic formulas tested in the Dartmouth study, two organic infant formulas listed brown rice syrup in the ingredients, one milk and the other soy-based, and both had arsenic readings 20 times greater than the others.

While the findings have some moms taking matters into their own hands and making their own homemade infant formula, not all of us have the time, or the skills, to toss together our own. So given the choice, do you pay the extra cost for organic or stick with the basic formula?

If you haven't read it by now, there's a post that's gone viral written by Amy Sohn about a new breed of moms — ones who hit the town or a night of serious partying along with other unmentionables. Sohn refers to how her friends get together once a month and call each other "Hookers, Sluts, and Drug Addicts." She continues to share details about a recent evening full of drinking, moments of nudity, and potential propositions. Her defense? She and other moms are responding to boredom and their lives evolving, and if acting like a 20-year-old for one night a month makes things seem just a little bit better, it's worth it.

Does Sohn take things a bit too far? Or is it becoming socially acceptable for moms to hit the town with their ladies and let loose with a drunken night out? As a mom of a toddler, I get few and far between nights to go out with girlfriends, and, for the most part, they are spent drinking margaritas at a local bar and then bed by midnight. With Sohn's new book, Motherland, coming out next month, is this just a publicity stunt to drive intrigued readers to prepurchase?

Enjoying a girl's night out is wonderful for any mama, providing much-needed time to dish about the ups and downs of parenting and marriage. But do things need to be taken to such extremes to have a "good time"? What do you think? Is Sohn spot-on with her portrayal of the modern-day mama hitting the town for a wasted girls' night out or just downright crazy?

Source: YumSugar

The other day I ran into a mom who proudly shared that she was having her tot's ears pierced that afternoon. She inquired if I had plans for my 3-year-old to be bedazzled, and honestly, I hadn't thought about it. My lobes weren't punctured until I was the ripe old age of 13 and I had figured it would be about the same for my daughter — if she's even interested then.

Baby ear piercing isn't for everyone and is more of a personal family decision than a societal one. Sure, popping studs in your lil one's ears helps define her as a girl, but you could also toss on a pink headband or dress her in head-to-toe pastels. There are several areas of the world where piercing an infant's ears happens before they even head home from the hospital. So why does the idea of baby ear piercing still cause some mamas to cringe?

If you do chose to bling your baby, pediatricians suggest waiting until after your child has had her DPT shots (diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus) and working with a reputable salon that has experience piercing infant's ears — or having your pediatrician do it. Select small studs that nestle in the lobe so tender ears won't get snagged while putting on and taking off clothing. And be prepared to properly care for the piercings with daily cleanings and turning of the posts.

What do you think? Baby ear piercing — yea or nay?

As far as taboo topics go, referring to motherhood as "boring" is pretty high up there. Challenging, life altering, at times impossible? We've heard them all (and probably even been there) before. But flat out boring? According to UK journalist Julie Cook's startlingly honest piece in the Daily Mail UK, becoming a mom hasn't been all it's cracked up to be. "Before Alex, I had a demanding and fulfilling career working in women's magazines as a freelance writer. My days were spent working hard, my weekends spent playing even harder . . . Then Alex arrived and overnight my role changed. I was no longer myself; I was a mother," Cook writes.

The dissatisfied mom attributes much of her frustration to the transition of going from having a fulfilling career, surrounding herself with intelligent friends and colleagues, and access to disposable income to the monotony of "mum friends" and having to allocate the family's earnings to childcare and other baby-related costs. She goes on to share the mixed reactions of friends after confessing her "secret":

At first their tired, sleepless eyes would widen in shock at my topic of conversation but then, usually after a couple of glasses of wine, they'd begin to nod, guilt streaking their faces . . . But then there were the other friends I pitched this idea to; the ones who'd look at me with utter contempt or horror. Their lives seemed to revolve around little Jacob's swimming lessons or Harriet's art classes.

What do you think of Julie Cook's "confessions"? Is she being selfish, or realistic? Have you too felt bored in your role as a mom? What do you miss most about your preparenthood days?